Method of making multicolor prints.



A H. SMITH. ME'HHJS 5F MAKING MULHCGEOE PRINTS. APPucmon Hm) MAY 13. 8915.

1,29%,71 9. Patented Feb. 18. 1919.

l 2 WW Inventor: ZMQW 44; Atty UNITED sTA'rns PATENT OFFICE.

AMOS H. SMITH, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.. ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN BANK NOTE COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

METHOD OF MAKING MULTIGOLOR PRINTS.

Application filed May 13, 1915.

To all whom it may concern:

lie it known that I, Auos H. SMITH, a citizen of the United States. residing at the borough of Bronx, city of New York, county of Bronx, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods of Making Multicolor Prints, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof.

My invention relates to a method of making multi-color prints and more particularly to a method by which certain effects secured by different printing methods may he secured during a single run of the sheet to he printed.

My invention is particularly adapted for producing work having a background tint and matter superimposed thereon in a contrasting tone or color. l'leretofcre the commercialpractice in producing work of this character has been to first make an impression upon the paper from a planographic or cameo printing surface, bearing thereon a design having a tint effect, or from a transfer surface upon which the design of such tinted plate has been offset. \Vhere the rinting has been directly from the tinted photographic surface, dampened sheets of paper have been used but when printing from an offset surface or from a cameo printing surface, dry paper hasbeen used. After this impression of the tint has been made upon the paper. the paper is allowed to staiul until the ink is dry and subsequently it. was run through a second press having a printing surface consisting of an engraved, intaglio or nuclei-surface printing plate. This class of work is usually employed in the production of safety papers. such as hanlcnotes. checks. bonds. stock certificates, drafts. coupons and other negotiable instruients.

When the tint either is printed upon dry paper. it has been necessary to dampen this paper before making the impression thereon from the engraved, intag'lio or under surface printing plate; and .when the tint efi'eet is impressed upon the paper by a. planographic surface, it has been necessary to rc-dampen the pa er before making an impression thereon 'y means of the engraved, intaglio or under surface plate. Hence, by the old method, each impression Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 18, 1919.

Serial No. 27,774.

upon the paper was made under different, conditions and in making the impression from the engraved, intaglio or under surface plate great care was necessary to secure accurate register, and uniformity. in the product.

To obviate the difiiculties of the existing practices, it has been suggested that paper of this character be printed at a single impression, this proposed method or art involving the offsetting of the tinted design upon the non-printing surface of the engraved, intaglio or undersurface plate and the. making of a single multi-color impression from this plate upon the paper. \Vhile this method has its advantages as compared with the methods usually practised, it is subject to the criticism that it entails the practice ot ditl'erent printing methods under those conditions particularly adapted to but. one of these methods. The conditions surrounding the printing from an engraved, intaglio or undersurface plate difi'er radically and fundamentally from the conditions present in printing from an ordinary cameo printing surface or from a planographic surface, not only as to pressures and speeds but as tothe nature of the ink employed. Hence, the best results cannot be secured hv means of this proposed method.

By extensive experiments, I have determined that it is not, essential in producing the so'called safety papers to allow the tint impression to dry before making the superimposed impression thereon from the engraved, intaglio or under-surface plate, nor to make these impressions simultaneously; but that paper of this character can he successfully produced by a continuous method wherein the tinted background is impressed upon dampened paper conditioned for use in connection with an engraved, intaglio or undersurface plate and the impression from an engraved, intaglio or undersurface plate is superimposed thereon immediately thereafter. By this method the background may be printed under those conditions particularl adapted to the printing method employed in making the background impression, and the impression from the engraved, intaglio or undersurface plate may be made under those conditions particularly adapted for this method ofprinting. At the same time, although, impres- .sions under the two methods are made sucsuch as to leave blanlrspacesfor the matter to be snperim ,osed thereon.

These con itions result from the wellknown fact that in making a tinted impression, the surface of the paper remains per fectly smooth which is not the case when printing from an undersurface plate.

By making consecutive impressions, the tinted impression may he made with Colin paratively light pressure while the impression from the under-surface printing plate,

may be made with a relatively greater pressure such as is required in this method of narily employed in piano rraphic, work and with: oifse presses; and t at used upon the s d riinfeelie nndersentacer 15 that-ordinarily used in undersnrfdee printheferring to Fig, 1 of the accompanying drawings, (1 represents a cylinder adapted to receive a plate 6 bearing thereon a design having a tint efl'ect which may be made y means of a pantograph, hoto-emgravion or any other desired or wel -known method.

Cooperating with said cylinder 0 is an inking mechanism comprising an ink fonntain a, distributing rollers (l and hiking rollers e. A

, Associated with the cylinder a is a seeond cylinder fihaving thereon an elasticsurface 9 upon which the design upon the plate I) is adapted to be ofi'eet. V a

At It is a cylinder carrying a printing surface-1i consisting of a non-elastic. metallic plate having, l surface. '1 c relation of the cylinders Ir to the cylinder f is such as to cause the design upon the elastic surface 9 to he transferred upon the metallic surface i which serves as a rinting =-5i1rface from which the tinted inipress'itgi pfon the" apex is made. Assoeiated with hieacylin or his awiping mechanism j the function of which is to remove the residue of ink upon the plate i'after the making of each impression, in a manner to prevent such changes in the condition of this surface 5 as would. after a prolonged run, result in a strengthening of the impression.

made ther from.

printe Adjacen' the cylinder h is a movable suppgrt k, adapted to carry an engraved, in-

taglio or undcrsurfaee printing plate Z and associated with said support are an inking and a polls rig mechanism 0. i i

Cooperating with the cylinder h is an ignpressiou cylinder, or D=rql l', p and cotiperating with the sup ort 7c is a second impression cylinder or roll q. Cooperating with eac of the impression cylinders 7J-q is a tran r cylinder 1" adapted to receive sheets from the cylinder p reverse a. continuous smooth, polished them and deliver them to the impression cylinder, or D-roll q, in a manner to cause the impression from. the, surface i and from the plate I to be superimposed one on the other.

A. feed shelf 5 is positioned adjacent the impression cylinder or D-roll p.

In Figs. 2 and 3 l have shown two forms of apparatus for use in the practice of my method or art wherein the arrangement of the printing surface and the mechanisms for preparing the same are like those shown in connection with the apparatus illustrated in Fig. l and above described: The apparatus shown in 'Figs. 2 and 3 difi'er from the apparatus shown in Fig: 1 merely as to the arrangement and relation of the impression cylindcr or cylinders in relation to said printing surface.

Inn-e a ofthe drawingsl employ two impression cylinders t-u one associated with the. eyIinder h, and the other with the support A. The paper is fed from the feed shelf a to the impression cylinder. or D-roll. v, and the impression cylinder or D-roll 11. receives the sheet. of paper from the cylinder h after the impression has been made thert on and brings it into engagement with the plate Z.

In the apparatus shown in Fig. 3, I em ploy a single impression cylinder or D-roll n common to and adapted to'coiiperate with, both the cylinder h and the support is sons to receive the paper sheet from the feed shelf .sand bring it into engagement with the printing surface 2' and the printing plate I snccessively,- while it is still on this eylindo! 23.

In the different types of apparatus shown it will be observed that the paper is printed by a continuous method and that multi-color prints are secured by a, single run of the paper through the machine, and that each impression will be made under exactly the same conditions as to the paper.

I am aware that in some three-color methods, successive impressions have been made from a plurality of photo-engraved plates upon succeeding cylinders. but in this type of work but one printing method is employed and the conditions are not. such as are found in high class commercial printing.

My invention is distinguished from the ordinary three-color printing .method. in that I am enabled to secure multi-color work by meahs of radically and ,fimdamentally different printing methods and under conditions which are not found in the ordinary three-color methods such as difi'erences in the character of the ink, in the character of the printing surface and in the pressures to which the paper must be subjected to secure the desired character of impression.

By my invention, I am enabled to produce, by a continuous method, a completed print by Letters Patent is 1. The method or art of making multicolor prints consisting in inking a printin surface having a tint design thereon, o settin said design upon an elastic surface, trans erring the design from said elastic surface to a surface having a smooth, polished, non-elastic, metallic surface, preparing an engraved, intaglio, or under-surface printing plate having a design thereon to be superimposed upon said tint design, and

making an impression upon the paper, first under light pressure from said smooth, polished, non-elastic, metallic surface, and immediately thereafter under relativel greater pressure from said other printin p ate.

2. The method or art of ma ing multicolor prints consisting in inking a printin surface having a tint design thereon, o settin said design upon an elastic surface, trans erring the design from said elastic surface to a surface having a smooth, polished, non-elastic, metallic surface, inking, wiping and polishin an engraved, int-aglio or undersurface pl ate having a design thereon to be superimposed upon said tint design and making an impression upon the paper, first under light pressure from said sinooth','polished, non-elastic, metallic surface and immediately thereafter under relatively greater pressure from said engraved intaglio or undcrsurface printing plate.

3. The method or art of making multicolor prints consisting in inkin a. printing surface having a tint design fiiereon, olfsettin said design upon an elastic surface, trans erring the design from said elastic surface to a surface havin a smooth, polislied, non-elastic, metallic surface, inking, wipin and polishing an engraved, intaglio or un ersurface plate having a design thereon to be en erimposed upon said tint design and ma ing an impression upon dampened paper, first from said smooth, polished, non'elastic, metallic surface and immediately thereafter from said engraved intaglio or undersurfaoe printing plate, the

said paper being subjected to difl'erent pressures when making said impressions respectively, the pressure upon the last named impression being relatively greater than upon the first impression.

4. The method or art of making multicolor prints consisting in superimposing a plurality of impressions upon a sheet of aper, one immediately after the other, the rst impression being made from an ink de sign upon a smooth, olished, non-elastic, metallic surface and t e second impression being made from an inked, polished and wiped engraved, intaglio or undersurface printing plate.

5. The method or art of making multicolor rints consisting in superim osing a plurality of impressions upon a heet of paper, one immediately after the ot er, the first impression being made from an ink design upon a smooth, polished, non-elastic, metallic surface and the second impression being made from an inked, polished and wiped engraved, intaglio or undersurface printing plate and under relatively greater pressure than upon the preceding impression.

6. The method or art of making multi- 'color prints consisting'in superimposing a pluralit of impressions u on a dampened sheet 0 paper, one imme iately after the other, the first impression being made from an ink design upon a smooth, polished, non-elastic, metallic surface and the second impression bein made from an inked, polished and wipe engraved, intaglio or undersurface pr ntin plate.

7. The method or art of making multicolor prints consisting in superimposing a plurality of impressions u on a dampened sheet of paper, one imine iwtely after the other, the first impression being made from an ink design upon a smooth, olished, nonelastic, metallic surface and t e second impression being made from an inked, wiped and polished engraved, intaglio or undersurface printing plate and under relatively greatenpressure than upon the preceding impression.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto affixed my signature in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, this 23rd day of April,

1915. AMOS H. SMITH.

- Witnesses:

Jnnrrii PARDEE, CLARICE Emerson. 

